Praying God's Word

One practice that I have come to enjoy is turning God's Word into my personal prayers. I learned this at a Promise Keepers gathering about 15 years ago.

Essentially, all it requires is to read through God's Word. When I come across something that seems particularly relevant, I change a few of the words to make it my own and then I pray it to God.

Here's how it works. I came across 1 Peter 5:8-9 this morning. Here's what it says:

1 Peter 5:8-9 (New Living Translation)

"Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your Christian brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering you are."

Here's how I might pray it:

"Lord Jesus, please help me to stay alert and watchful today.

I know that I had better be diligent because I have an incredibly powerful enemy, the devil. He prowls around just like a roaring lion who would love to paralyze me with fear and doubt. He spends his days looking for someone to devour.

Lord Jesus, help me to realize that while my enemy has a loud roar, he is chained and cannot touch me without Your permission. Help me to stand firm against him, to resist him as a courageous warrior of the cross. Allow me to experience that courage that comes by wholeheartedly trusting you, being strong in your faith.

And Lord, please help me to never forget that I'm not in this alone. Help me to remember that my brothers and sisters all over the world are going through the same kind of suffering and tempting circumstances as I am.

And finally, help me to remember that one day, it will all be over as I stand before you in glory. I want to live today in light of eternity. Amen."

Try doing this in your own time with the Lord. It takes the two basic Christian disciplines, Bible intake and prayer, and combines them. The end result is that you are essentially meditating on God's Word and allowing it to take root in your mind and heart.